[IC] Palm Beach Royals: Senior Year

[ineffable]

_{Location: King's Academy
Interacting with: Carter Newton}

Georgie picked at her food listlessly as she grabbed her phone and swiped through it absentmindedly. She thought back to the weekend she'd had and smiled a small bit, caught up in the fun she'd had and the pictures she'd taken. Which reminded her, she still needed to take those photos to be developed in the dark room if she'd wanted it to be entered into any competitions. But first...she had to get through lunch. Her stomach rumbled as she set down her phone and dug in, her hand hanging over her eyes and obscuring her view of what was happening in front of her. She'd settled to eating her lunch outside on one of the picnic tables and took in the sounds of cars whizzing by, the breeze brushing her arms softly. The bubbling of a fountain somewhere nearby made her smile and she closed her eyes, if only for a bit.

"You don't mind if I sit here, do you?" Georgie shook her head no and snapped her eyelids open. She didn't look up to see who had just spoken as a fry hanging halfway to her mouth still. Whoever it was she didn't care too much anyway. Georgie didn't exactly recognise the voice after all.
"You're Georgia, right? I think we have a class together... English, right?"
Georgie looked up to see the face of Carter Newton and almost laughed. They'd never really talked in class so she didn't recognise his voice but now that she saw who it was, she was pleasantly surprised that he'd chosen to come sit with her.
"You can call me Georgie, everyone does. And yes, we do have English together. Mr. Roberts is an absolute scare." She glanced longingly at his beef empanadas and took a quick survey of her own disgusting cafeteria food. God, would she have loved a bite of that.
"Sorry, but that smells delicious...where did you get it from?" She asked bluntly. She supposed he must've bought it from somewhere, seeing as no one's parents here at Palm Beach really did make homemade meals for their children. It was either Michelin star restaurants or die. She smiled back up at Carter.

[AlteredTundra]

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Some people stand in the darkness, Afraid to step into the light.
Some people need to have somebody on the edge of surrenders inside.

Don’t you worry, it’s gonna be alright
‘cause I’m always ready I won’t let you outta my sight.

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Ariel offered no parting words to her father, nor did he offer any to her. Simply getting up and walking out of the office as calmly as she could, she shoved her hands into her jacket pockets to keep them from shaking. While Chamberlain had dismissed them to lunch, Ariel didn’t feel any sort of hunger. What she felt was nearly indescribable. It was the feeling she always got around her father. Her stomach tied in a knot, her palms sweaty, a lump in her throat, and her mind racing. No doubt she would have to deal with his anger about having to come to the school later.

Instead of heading towards the lunchroom, Ariel made a beeline for double doors at the end of the hall that led to the outside. Fresh air. That was what she needed right now. Soon Kavi was right behind her as he had pushed open the door for her.

“Well, thank fuck that’s over,” he stated, breathing out one single breath of relief. “If only our fathers knew we had resolved it yesterday. Maybe they could have saved themselves a trip.”

”Trillian Grey never listens to anyone but himself,” she said, her voice hostile. ”I could have told him not to come a thousand times and he still would. Because that's what he does. That's Trillian.

Kavi laughed as they made it outside the front office. “If you forgive me for saying this,” he paused, looking at Ariel, “I really wanted to punch the fuck out of his face.” He admitted with only a little shame, if not because he was Ariel’s father and while he didn’t like Trillian one bit, he did like Ariel a great deal.

Oh, the bittersweet irony. How many times over the years had Ariel laid in her bed wishing someone would come and punch her father square in his face. But for some odd reason that she couldn’t really figure out, Ariel didn’t want Kavi to do that. ”I wouldn’t advise that Kavi,” she said as she stopped walking, looking him in the eye.

It took Kavi a short moment to see that Ariel had stopped. “What? You don’t think I could take him?” He joked, a smile on his face.

”No. Because he'd h-” Because he'd hurt you like he did me. ”Because has the type of guy to press charges. He'd have so many lawyers on your ass it isn't funny. He has to many connections in this town. The man can get away with just about anything he wants.”

As he stood there, Kavi was starting to think those rumors that Nikki told him about were more than just rumors. The way she spoke about Trillian wasn’t how a daughter should speak about her own father. He didn’t know what, but he knew one thing: there was something Ariel wasn’t telling him and he intended to find out what it was, but he knew he had to tread carefully. There was no telling what her reaction could be if he was too blunt about it.

Taking another short moment, he just let out a small breath, sighing more to himself. “Even men with connections get brought down. Just look at what happened with Harvey Weinstein. A big powerful man in Hollywood and he was brought to his knees in the eyes of the public,” Kavi reminded her. “And if he tries to come at me, well, then I’ll just have to come at him harder.” Always the confident one, Kavi showed no fear when it came to what may or may not happen to him at the hands of Trillian Grey.

”Kavi. You don’t understand. Do you have any idea how many times I’ve seen my father wiggle out of the most stickiest of situations? How many times he’s slipped a couple of hundreds into someone else's hand? And as if he didn’t have financial influence over people, he has his mind games.” She took a deep breath, her mind racing.

Ariel knew what she said didn’t really make any sense to Kavi. But she couldn’t just outright tell him one of her biggest secrets, could she?

”The point is - you aren’t hitting my father. There’s no reason for you to. What you have seen back there was just him being his normal self. He’s known to be an asshole sometimes.”

“Do you know who you’re talking to? I mean, everyone says how much of a douchebag I can be. My broken nose is the consequence of it.” Kavi pointed to his nose, smiling to prove his point. “Besides, I don’t like the way he treats you. He had no problem belittling you in front of not only my father but the fucking principal of our school. Even if I were to face assault charges, it would be worth it just to know I got a good shot in.”

”I just really don’t want to see you get hurt, okay? While you know how to pack a punch, so does he. You might be a douche, he might be a douche. You can throw fists, so can he. But when it comes down to it at the end of the day, you will never be the monster he is.” It took her a moment to realize what she had said, her face getting hot.

Something was up, Kavi could see it. The way she was talking about her father and just how worried she seemed about how her father might hurt him caused the teen to raise an eyebrow not out of suspicion but curiosity and concern. “Ariel, is everything okay?” He asked, a hand on her shoulder for comfort. “I’m here for you, I hope you know that. We’re friends now or whatever you wanna call it.” He smiled at her. “Or if you don’t want to, we don’t have to. We can just go somewhere and hang out. Either way, I’m here for you.”

Ariel took a deep breath. Was Kavi the best person to trust with this? Perhaps not, but Ariel could think of a lot worse people to tell her secret to. She bit down on her bottom lip before speaking. ”Remember that one time I broke my arm at soccer practice when I was eight, but I didn't play soccer, but no one questioned it? Or that time I broke two of my ribs when I was thirteen practicing a new dance move that I showed you I had perfected just two days before? All of those random wrist sprains or all of the bruises that just come and go? Remember how I flipped out on you for no reason when you suddenly grabbed my arm at Santiago's party?” She was going to say more but had to stop, her voice getting thick. She felt her face getting hot, and he vision blurring as her eyes filled with tears. Was Kavi going to solve the puzzle, or was she going to have to outright say it?

“It must’ve been difficult for you to keep this a secret for so long.” He finally spoke, looking at her and taking her hands into his, squeezing them only enough so she would know that he wasn’t going anywhere. “I’m here for you, Ariel. I’m not going anywhere. If you want to get the hell out of here, I’ll get us an Uber to meet us around the corner and we can ditch the rest of the day. Or we can go to the cafeteria and I’ll buy you as many slices of extra cheese pizza with cheese-stuffed garlic knots. Or whatever you need, I’m going to be right next to you. You’re not alone, Ariel.”

Ariel had to take deep uneven breaths now as she tried to calm her nerves. Kavi didn’t take off back through the doors and charge after her father. Rather the tears coming down were a product of having this weight removed off her shoulders or because she was scared of what to come, she didn’t know. She removed one of her hands from Kavi’s grasp, clasping it over her mouth to keep from being to loud - something that didn’t come without practice. She couldn’t help it. Before Ariel even realized what she was doing, the young woman had her face buried in Kavis chest.

”I… d-don’t feel l-like eating right n-n-now,” she managed.

Kavi reacted as he only knew how: he wrapped his arms around Ariel and embraced her tight. He heard the sounds of her whimper become muffled into his school uniform and he ran a hand up and down the back of her head, patting her black hair softly. As they sat on a bench that was a bit away from the cafeteria but still outside in the sunshine, Kavi continued to comfort her.

“Just let it all out,” he said softly, “I’m not going anywhere.”

[AlteredTundra]

L o c a t i o n • Unholy Trinity Table I n t e r a c t i o n s • Chanel and Julie (directly), and Xixi &Reli (indirectly/observing)

Truth be told, the poor brunette was finding herself lost in everything that was happening, she was struggling to just keep track of who came and went. In the span of what felt like an eternity for her, a few others came and went from the general area. She surprisingly remembered the names even if the faces were like blurs. Someone named XiXi and another named Reli. She also remembered something about the second one being an idiot? God, it was confusing and difficult to remember everything she heard come from April and Chanel. Again, she had mentally tried to do everything within her power to not become a victim of the overwhelming feeling passing through her.

And boy was Stella finding herself lucky that XiXi, who she couldn't help but notice was very pretty, left with another person who was easy on the eyes.

By the time she even realized what was happening, Stella parked it next to Chanel. She only knew Chanel from being on the same cheerleading squad and even then the times she talked to her was minimal at most, which brought Stella down a bit. She tried to be as nice to just about anyone who crossed her path. She knew some found it a little weird and annoying, but she never let it get to her. And she had heard some ...frightening things about Chanel. Stranger thing was Chanel never showed that to Stella. Maybe it was her own innocence that blinded her. Honestly, she wasn't sure. Thinking back on a lot of things, she wasn't quite sure exactly what to believe. For the moment, however, she thought Coco was nice. She wouldn't want to jinx it. Stella Lambert didn't do confrontation well.

As Stella just sat there, almost deer in the headlight-like eyes darting from Chanel and Julie, she felt like the fish out of water. Still, that didn't stop her from giving both of them a smile. "How bad is it? Will I need a new skirt?" She asked, again her head going left to right then back to the left when she would look to both Chanel and Julie.

[Ejected]

<sub>Sky's the Limit

Location: King's Academy
Interacting with: Georgia Fielders</sub>

---

---

"Okay, Georgie," Carter said with a slight tilt of his head and a half-smile, relieved that the girl had so easily welcomed him to her table. "And yeah, I feel you. Roberts can be very... difficult every now and then." Soon after Carter said this, the young man picked up one of his beef empanadas and took a large bite out of the side. It was only after he'd started to dab at the corners of his mouth with a napkin that he noticed the yearning look upon Georgie's face. Carter then took a quick peek at what the girl had bought for her own lunch: a cheese burger and a cup of cold looking fries. The young man shuddered at the thought of having to go through the line and purchase the food that the lunch ladies had to offer them; he figured that he'd much rather wait until he got home to eat than waste money on a meal he'd have to force down.

"Sorry, but that smells delicious... where did you get it from?" Georgia suddenly said, and Carter couldn't help but smile at her blunt curiosity. And, after all, she wasn't wrong; the empanadas did smell and look great, so he didn't really blame her for wanting to find out where he'd gotten them from.

"Mi madre made them for me," Carter said with a shrug of his shoulders. "Usually it's just leftovers from whatever we ate the night before, but since we didn't have any family dinners this weekend she just cooked these last night before she went to bed. She knows that I don't like the food here, so..." Carter let his voice trail off as he stared at the Tupperware in front of him. His mom had shoved six empanadas into the plastic container, and although he'd originally planned to devour every single one of them, he suddenly decided that he could spare a couple. Without much hesitation, Carter pushed the container in front of Georgia's own tray. "You're not allergic to cheese or tomatoes or anything, are you? I don't wanna have to call an ambulance or anything like that." The boy asked with a raised eyebrow, "Cause if not, you're welcome to try a few."

[ineffable]

_{Location: King's Academy
Interacting with: Carter Newton}

Georgie nodded in agreement with what Carter said about Mr. Roberts as she poked at her burger distrustingly (if you could even distrust a burger that is) and chewed on a cold fry. She was anticipating his response to where he had gotten those amazing smelling empanadas, almost reaching for a pen and paper to jot down the name of the shop but stopping herself at the last minute as Carter replied to her.
"Mi madre made them for me. Usually it's just leftovers from whatever we ate the night before, but since we didn't have any family dinners this weekend she just cooked these last night before she went to bed. She knows that I don't like the food here, so..." As he talked Georgie felt a sense of nostalgia take over her. When she was small she remembered her dad making her snacks to take to school and her mom packing her lunches, or even her brothers sneaking in an occasional chocolate bar but now...well, there was no one to take care of her lunch anymore, or make her home cooked meals. Her brothers were away at university and her mother and father were out of the house before she even woke up to go to school, returning so late and tired that she didn't want to bother them with cooking her food. She usually ordered in or lived off of stale, microwaved pizza from the night before. She missed her dad's mac and cheese, her mom's scribbled notes that she would frequently leave in Georgie's lunch bag. Time had changed.

"You're welcome to try a few." Georgie snapped out of her nostalgia trip and shook her head no when he asked if she had any allergies, bursting into a wide smile as he said that she could try some of his lunch. Gingerly, she picked out one empanada and bit into it, savouring the meat inside and the hint of the spices that came along with it.
"Oh my god, this is so good. Tell your mom I'd be willing to buy these, if she's ever selling or if she's offering a recipe." Georgie closed her eyes and spread her slightly greasy lips into another wide smile. It'd been a long time since she felt warmth, not just from the empanadas but from the heart that had made them.
"Thank you Carter, It's been a long time since I've had a homecooked meal." Georgie looked away for a second, embarrassed at her blunt sharing of her inner family workings and lightly slapped her thigh. God, would that comment make her family look bad?

[Hoekage]

_{@Hoekage&[@Syn] Collab}

_{Starring:
Aurelio & Ximena}

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

Aurelio had leaned his backside against the edge of a table next to the one Chanel and Julie had assumed their rightful positions upon.

“Aurelio, Stella."

The name was fitting for her and earned a small nod from the now silent observer, he wouldn’t be forgetting that name, nor the face associated with it She was cute. Aurelio’s attention was pulled to his right as the number two suspect for Yessi’ poor mood called out to him.

“Oh, thank god just who I needed to see"

An eyebrow raised in curiosity at that statement, and as his brown eyes analyzed her face he thought he could faintly see a peculiar shadow underneath the almost perfect attempt to hide the mark. God, I hope I’m wrong.

“While it’s all very nice to see you all here again in such short notice, I need to borrow Aurelio for a bit. Of course, if that’s okay with the rest of you. I’ll have him back to you in a jiffy”

The fake smile mirrored by Chanel was enough encouragement for the boy to get Ximena out of there sooner than later. Aurelio gave a short wave to the three girls as he pushed off from the table, “I’ll catch up with you two later and it was nice meeting you Stella.”

Aurelio led Ximena away from the bustling courtyard and to the growing vacancy of the hallways between the auditorium and entrance of the building. When he was sure they wouldn’t be bothered by anything he turned to her with narrowed eyes, the shadow was harder to see now in the artificial light of the hallway.

“Does the reason you need me pertain to what the fuck happened to your face or am I going to have to save that question for later?”

The tension building was quite high, but it was all deserved after the antics Ximena was up to prior to the events of homecoming. While she was sure Chanel had a disdain for her, Ximena simply did not feel the same. She had a deep respect for her as a worthy rival and a connoisseur of both fashion and music. If the two ever worked to a peaceful amnesty then they would have more than enough connections pooled between them to raise their personal statuses. Of course, however, the idea would seem like signing your soul to the devil. It might be, well then again there was no telling what the sly minx was up to and if she always needed something to gain.

As not to linger she hoped Aurelio would pry her away, so Chanel wouldn’t be reserved to slapping her across the face like a certain boy just two evenings ago. As always it was nice to see her other half in Julie also present. The new girl Stella was someone she hadn’t accounted for but her little birds would sing her secrets soon enough. Just in the nick of time Aurelio pulled her away and sent his regards to the trio of lovely predators.

Aurelio led her through turns and corners quite quickly and forceful she almost broke a heel; not even able to get more than a stuttering word in. His face changed, this wasn’t the same Aurelio she had known when they were kids nor the one she met prior to the bruise on her face. Something changed or maybe he changed, Ximena only hoped than both Astor’s weren’t ready to leave a decade of friendship behind.

“It’s nice to see you to Reli. Was that the new piece of ass you were thirsting for back there?” she tried to say in attempts of playing off the serious aura radiating off the two of them. It failed, she didn’t really care about Stella or Aurelio’s intentions with her. Being weak was something she never wanted to show outside of the confines of her room. Her fake laugh grew into a silence that felt like it lasted hours when it had only been a few seconds. Her head heavy like lead, fell to the ground with her eyes plastered to her feet. The sides of her heels rubbed together releasing a sound of plastic friction, he hands clasped together hoping to provide some kind of strength to lead from.

“Y..Ye..Yeah, it does. It’s just….I don’t know what happened Aurelio, I really really fucked up and I just- I don’t know! I didn’t even know she liked him. You know I wouldn’t do something like that on purpose I wouldn’t hurt you guys. No se que paso, it all happened so fast. That night at the party and then this.” She was rambling, hopefully, Aurelio stopped the girl before she turned into a Spanglish novella.

The hardness in his eyes melted as they saw the uncertainty in her own, the deflecting question preceding her rambling was easily ignored as he tried to make sense of the mess that spilled from her lips. The quivering of her bottom lip, the transfer of weight between her hips and the trembling of her hands were so unlike the Ximena the public was allowed to see, Aurelio knew whatever had happened was serious.

“Xi, take a deep breath,” his voice was low as he stepped toward the girl entering her space and placed gentle hands on either side of her face, “Look at me Ximena, you know I got you, but you’re going to have make sense of what’s going on. Tell me again, but slow down, you’re okay.”

The silence was finally broken, thank god. There was something soothing about his voice, it was new and foreign but not unwelcome. The sweet scent of cologne snuck up her nose, had he moved closer or was she imaging it? Her eyes raising from her feet now found the tips of his own shoes, he had entered her space. Loosing up her hands she drew in small breaths of air, exhaling every three seconds. Suddenly her chest wasn’t so tight and her heart wasn’t in her throat.

The sudden shock of his hands startled her, jolting her face in his hands. With one more deep breath, she did as he asked and looked at him. She recognized these eyes, his soft brown pupils, she wanted to pull away but was trapped inside them. While his eyes were as he remembered everything else around him was different. He was a man now, at least more of a man than the last time she saw him. When did he get so muscular and rugged. It’s like she always knew, but she never accepted it until now.

“I don’t know where to start Reli. Déjame pensaré” the beginning was always the best she thought, “okay well you know that guy Santiago? Well, he held a party a few months ago like that project X movie on steroids. Pues, this was when he and that April girl were on the outs. Entonces...well...we used each other” she paused “and well I didn’t know Yessi and him had a thing. I was in LA and you guys were in Korea. So I told her and well you know the rest” a weight was lifted off her shoulders, but her hands found themselves on the sides of his shirt gripping tightly.

“So?”

The chuckle that left his lips was mostly out of relief, and a little bit of disbelief. The information Ximena just shared shed a lot of light on the morning and explained away his questions about his sister’s, more than usual, piss-poor attitude from earlier. Aurelio released his reassuring hold on the girl’s face and wrapped his arms around her shoulders pulling her in for a hug as he let a more audible laugh escape his chest.

Good god, the woes of women were over his head.

“So what? You think Ass is going to stay mad at you forever? Nah, you know she’s not like that. My annoying ass sister might be a little more than hotheaded and irrational in the worst times, but she loves you Ximena, she’ll come around after she realizes how stupid she’s being. Then you two can do whatever weird lover shit y’all do and be as good as new.”

Aurelio had pulled away from the hug to look over the girl with a wide grin on his face, he brushed a lock of her hair behind her ear,” Astraia would never turn her back on you, she’s just on edge right now because she made some choices that she’s probably regretting. Not that that excuses her punching you, but if you want to get her back for that let me know and I’ll hold her down for you.”

His hands went from her face to a full embrace, enveloping her whole. Her body went from tense and rigid to limp and relaxed. She hadn’t been able to relax like this since, before her fight with Yessi, it was...nice. And while she could have stayed like that for the rest of the day, she knew they couldn’t. Ximena and Aurelio could never be more than what they started out as, friends. For now, she would milk this moment while it lasted.

“I don’t know Aurelio, I’ve never seen her this mad! You should have seen her, it was like I was no one to her in that instant” her head rested against his chest “I hope so I really do miss her, I don’t know how I made it while you guys were away.” She laughed at his remark burying her face into him mumbling, “Sounds to me like you’re just jealous.”

And just like that, the hug was over when he pulled away to look at the once disheveled girl. Yet he still pressed on with his delicate touch. “I know I know I wish I could help her, but I don’t think she wants to speak to me right now” a soft pout appeared on her face. “I would take you up on that offer, but I’d probably break a nail. I have another idea, let’s just say the road to hell is paved with good intentions.”

[CaliforniaState]

Sigh that’s all that Aaliyah pretty much could do. Sitting by herself while having lunch was pretty much the norm for her. If no one came to sit with her or at least make an attempt to see her as more than Casper the friendly ghost in the first 3 years why would this year be any different. There a thought it would be after having drawn some attention with her homecoming look, but that was gone faster than Kavi in the back of a police cruiser. So instead, lonely girl was left to her yearly routine.

Despite being such an affluent school the cafeteria food still managed to come out looking like last weeks meatloaf, in fact she was pretty sure it was meatloaf or at least she hoped. Instead of playing with her phone she decided to play with her phone instead. She didn’t really know why she had one, her phone was as dry as the biscuits at Popeyes. That was a lie, she needed it for her parents in case of emergency and her school email. Gotta keep up with those scholarships and programs she thought sarcastically in her mind.

It wasn’t more than 5 minutes before she got bored of scrolling through the same MUA youtubers she always watched and subreddits alike. She couldn’t help but look up and steal glances from across the cafeteria where Chanel and Julie sat. Queens in their court greeted by their people, except for Ximena. Aaliyah knew to stay away from that one, not all queens were noble. She couldn’t help but notice another fellow accident prone high schooler in Stella. The torn fabric on her skirt screamed at Aaliyah begging her to fix it. As much as she tried to ignore the urge to look and join the pact, the more it pulled her in. It was her time, no more standing around to wait for something to happen.

In a surge of adrenaline and confidence Aaliyah jumped out of her seat and to her feet. The realization of what she had done swarmed her with a wave of embarrassment. She hadn't thought this far ahead and so she sat down as quickly as she got up. ”No, No! Get back up. Just take baby steps you’ll be fine” giving herself quite the pep talk. Once more Aaliyah stood up with tray in hand. Her feet felt like cement, but she pressed on. With ever step closer to Julie and Chanel doubt crept into her mind. This amassed into her walking two steps turning around and walking back two steps and then turning around and walking two more steps forward...then turning around and walking two steps back.

If anything she probably did manage to capture the attention of her peers, she hadn’t even noticed Aurelio and Ximena were already long gone. ”Deep breaths Aaliyah you’re almost there. You’re a lion. You’re a lion. Hear me roar! She did manage to make it to the group but instead of a roar it was more of an, “uh_{hhheyhowsitgoingokaybye}” as she sped walk past them hoping they didn’t notice. Once she was out of view she threw her back into a wall and slinked down in defeat burying her face into her arms, nearly perched on the tops of her knees. “I Suck.”

[spooner]

_{Starring Archer | Kavan}

“Hey dude.”

At the sound of Archer's unmistakable voice, Kavan's head suddenly snapped up, his eyebrows raised in momentary surprise. At a loss for words, the young man simply nodded his head in greeting as he watched his oldest friend take the empty seat across from him. Kavan soon found his palms sweating from nervousness as the two sat in silence for a brief second; they began to sweat even more when Archer finally opened his mouth to speak. The glare from the sun now fell full on his face, which was serene, placid, his usual mask of supreme indifference; Kavan unflinchingly stared back into the boy's eyes as he spoke, desperately trying not to show just how jumbled his mind was at that very moment. It wasn't until about a minute after Archer had finished speaking that Kavan had finally collected his thoughts and began to air everything out.

"Archer..." Kavan began as he let out a breath he didn't even know he'd been holding, "Man... the feelings have always been there. My feelings for you. You didn't do anything that I haven't been wanting you to do for what feels like forever." As Kavan talked, he found himself studying the other boy's facial expressions, anxious to see how he'd react. But despite the nervousness, Kavan sucked in another breath and continued on. "I really really like you too, Archer. I have for a long time, and what happened yesterday was... amazing. Never in a million years would I wish to take any of that back. The only reason things happened the way they did was because of me being scared. Of what we've potentially ruined... and of my parents, you know? I mean, I almost lose my mind just thinking about what they'd say or do if they ever found out that they have a bisexual son."

Archer bit his lower lip in response to Kavan’s last comment and slowly removed his hand and let it rest together with his other hand in his lap under the table. He concentrated on Kavan’s face as he tried to steady his breath. So he was scared, if anyone could understand it would be Archer. Hell he spent most of his early teens being scared: of his dad, his reputation or being pushed around.

“Look… Van” he started before falling silent again. “I get it… you know I- i- i- i- really do.” Archer stuttered as he took uneven breaths. He couldn't believe what was about to come out of his mouth. But he had fought too hard and too long to come out of his closet he was not up for getting into someone else’s. “But…” He locked his jaw in determination. “I can’t be someone’s secret…” he let out and looked up at Kavan eyes shining in desperation.

"But you don't have to be a secret," Kavan said, unintentionally raising his voice. The young man took a quick, sheepish glance at the librarian, who'd shot him a look of warning, before continuing in his normal tone. "I mean... not to anyone else. My sister... Amoli. She already knows. She was the first one to know, actually. And it's not like I care about what anyone in this damn school thinks about me or has to say about my personal life. This could still work, Archer."

Archer sat silent for a moment contemplating what Kavan had just said. He knotted his eyebrows together and smiled tight lipped. “But…” he began before falling silent in thought again. “So, we could just never be at your place? Or… Amoli would be like our look out and make a bird call as soon as your parents would get home?”

Of course, at the thought of Amoli having to make strange noises whenever she needed to warn Kavan and Archer, the young man let out a brief chuckle and shook his head. Because he knew that, while his sister had done them a solid the day before, there was a slim chance that she would ever be willing to act as their "look-out." Hell, she'd probably try to convince Kavan to come out to his parents before she ever did anything of the sort. "Look, my parents already know that we've been friends for a few years," Kavan finally said after giving it a little thought, "And they know that you've been to our house multiple times. They literally welcome you in with open arms. I don't see why anything has to change when you do come over, except for the fact that we'd have to be a little more... careful. You know, so Amoli wouldn't have to start practicing her bird calling skills."

A big sigh left Archer as he straightened in his seat. “Look no one wants this to work more than me dude…” he looked around the near empty library. “I just don’t want you to feel weird around your parents because of me.” he stood up and walked around to the same side as Kavan and sat down in the chair next to him. “But if you’re sure… I want to make this work.” Archer smiled and grabbed Kavan’s hand as he leaned in and planted a small kiss on the dark boys lips.

"Okay, so it’s settled, then,” Kavan said with a wide grin after pulling away from Archer’s lips, “We’re going to make this work.”

[spooner]

---

---

“Oh it’s not that bad” Julie smiled sweetly at Stella as she patted the spot next to her on the bench. The redhead opened the sewing kit and picked out a fitting thread and needle for Stella’s skirt. As the girl sat down Julie examined her skirt and started to stitch the rip as carefully as she could. “This will work for today at least!” Julie exclaimed as she snipped the thread with the miniature scissors from her kit. “What do you think Chanel?” she asked as she packed the sewing kit back in to her bag.

When she didn’t get an answer Julie finally looked up from her handywork. Red eyebrows rose when she followed her best friend line of sight and her blue eyes landed on the female version of the Devil. The Succubus one could say.

Julie didn’t really pay much attention to what the succubus was saying but got the jist of what she wanted. She waved a hand lazyly as she dragged Aurelio away from them. She rolled her eyes at Chanel knowing she felt the same way about the girl. “Wonder what that was all about? The Astor twins coming back is probably going to stir up more than we are ready for…” she mused.

“Hey… Didn’t she and…” Julie began before being cut of by someone fast and loudly blurting a greeting and a goodbye in the same breath. The big beautiful head of curly hair was instantly recognizable as Aaliyah King. Giving the other girls a confused look Julie stood up and slowly made her way over to where Aaliyah had rushed towards.

As she rounded the corner Julie spotted the girl sitting on the grass with her head in her arms. “Uh…” the redhead began. “Mind if I sit Aaliyah? This is something new… eating lunch on the ground.” she let out a small laugh as she floated down next to Aaliyah smoothing her skirt as she did so. “Is there something wrong?”

[Hoekage]

_{@Hoekage & @Spooner Collab}

_{Starring: Astraia | Max}

Max held his hand above his face shielding his eyes from the bright Florida sun as he scanned the parking lot. His lips curled into a devious smile as he spotted the bombshell sashaying quickly across the lot.

“Hey Astor! What the fuck?!” Max yelled with his hands cupped around his mouth when he got out to the parking lot.

The yell made her stride slowdown for a moment, Astraia considered turning around to greet her old friend. Though as her head turned to the side, eyes passing over the huge windows of the school her eyes found him once again. This time his lips were no longer pulled down in a frown but locked in a loving dance with some girl she couldn’t quite make out. “Yep, seems about right.” her voice was a grumble as she pulled her eyes away and continued her mission to her precious darling.

He jogged closer to Yessi as she was striding towards what he guessed was her new car. “You used to run towards me not away from me!" he laughed as he caught up to his former best friend.

She slowed down and eventually stopped shaking her head as she did. Her shoulders vibrating as if she was holding back laughter before she turned toward him surveying Max. "So you got hotter too? Hmm... that's not fair. Anyways, Hello Wallenberg, when did you start chasing girls? Isn't it usually the other way around?" she asked crossing her arms in front of her.

Max let out a loud bark of a laugh. “I only chase what I can’t have! You know this.” He smiled widely at her. “But seriously though, why the hell are you back here?” he asked raising his eyebrows at her.

"Shouldn't you be telling me how much you missed me? I came back so your heart could be at peace, Maxy." Yessi cooed as she stepped closer to the burley young man.

The blond boy scoffed continuing to grinn down at the shorter girl. “Uh-uh-uh…” he wagged a finger at her. “You’re not dodging this Yess! You’re going to tell me where you’ve been and why you left me on read for almost two years.” He demanded as he looked past the girl towards her shiny sports car. “You want to head to the gym?” He jerked his head towards the car.

"This is why I've always loved you Max, you know just the right words to turn me on. I'll drive us so I can introduce you to my new baby. And don't worry I'll tell you all you want to know, but it stays between us. Got it?" she warned sticking a well manicured finger in Max’s face.

The tall boy rolled his eyes as he put an arm around her “Fine…” he exclaimed leading her towards the car.

Yessi finally let herself mirror his smile as she gave into his infectious sunshine personality and slung a loose arm around the back of his waist. Yess slowed their pace as they rounded the shiny McLaren near the back of the lot and couldn’t help but to let out a low whistle as she pulled away from Max to pay her car the affections it deserved.

“I know you’ve had your fair share of girls, Maxy.” The wink she threw was teasing as she ran a finger over the curve of the passenger door before opening it and gestured for Max to enter,” but I’m about to give you the best ride of your life.”

His face lit up like he was a kid at christmas “Hell...yes!” Max exclaimed excitedly as he got into the low car. He took a look around the interior of course the car was decked out with the finest choices of add ons and the smell of italian leather filled his nostrils. As Yessi got in he grinned broadly at her. “Go on then Astor take us away!”

“Of course.” The reply was simple but the roar of the engine as the ignition turned over was answer enough. A smug satisfaction took over Astraia’s expression as she shifted into drive and sent the car forward in a slow crawl through the winds of the parking lot. The slow cruise lasted only a few seconds, and quickly turned into a thrill ride as the 720 responded to Yessi’s excitement by tearing down the straight exit of the school and onwards to the gym, sounding all the parts of the race car its specs claimed it to be.

With the speed they were going it was no surprise that they arrived at Asgard Fitness just in a matter of minutes. As soon as they parked the car Max jumped out just as excited as his dog got when they went for drives. “Come on! Let’s get this session going!” he exclaimed as he pushed the door open. He cheerily greeted the receptionist and scanned his membercard. “Meet me by the punching bags when you’re ready!” he almost ordered before heading into the mens changing rooms.

Astraia threw her training bag over her shoulder and followed the overly enthusiastic boy into the very place where they first met. “Get ready to be amazed at my ass kicking abilities, Max!” she called out to his retreating form before heading off to the ladies’ locker room.

Finally, it was time to blow off steam in her second favorite way.

[AlteredTundra]

_{@Altered Tundra & @Dirty Pretty Lies Collaboration featuring Sonny Drake & Marisol Castillo}

After a decent amount of their lunch hour being wasted of playing with each other’s food, flinging condoms at the nerds who had their backs turned, and general tomfoolery, the duo unanimously known as Dumb and Dumber departed from their usual table. When they left the cafeteria, they wandered around for a bit. Some of the time spent walking was accompanied by talking and some of it was just fooling around by running and playing a game of ‘dodge the student in front of you’.

That game only lasted five minutes when Sonny bumped into someone, effectively losing said game. Marisol being Marisol would obviously gloat in his face and Sonny obviously being sonny was pouting until they reached their usual hangout spot, which is to say the spot they got high at. And of course, it was none other than the upper levels of the bleachers overlooking the football stadium. It was relatively far enough from any prying eyes and it was the right amount of privacy that the two enjoyed, at least until someone discovered where they were. For now, Sonny and Marisol would enjoy the peace and quiet.

While Marisol was getting herself situated, Sonny took to his phone. He had felt his phone vibrate in his pocket when they were having lunch but he couldn’t be bothered to check it. Now, however, he was catching up. Some notifications were about his phone being updated, new features and updates on existing features, meanwhile the rest were from his social media pages -- mainly Twitter and Instagram.

Sonny glanced up from his phone, seeing Marisol light a blunt. This immediately took his full attention away from his cell phone screen and to the familiar scent of burning kush. “I thought you quit after smashing Vic’s car?” He asked her, a slight chuckle following.

Marisol shrugged her shoulders, a mischievous grin on her small face. "It's weed, Son, not crack cocaine. It relaxes me," she explained, taking a deep pull from the strawberry-flavored blunt and offering it to the boy. "You want some? Got it from Carter the other day, so you know it's legit."

“From Carter, huh? Yeah, I’ll take some of that quality MJ from our local dealer,” he smiled, taking the joint into his right index finger and thumb, taking one inhale. “Whoa!” Sonny exclaimed in the sudden scent and slight taste of fruity strawberry. “I did not expect a burst of strawberry. I guess Carter’s been sampling some e-cigs and decided to copy it for his weed.”

The young woman gave an amused chuckle. "It's the blunt that gives it the flavor, you dumb shit!" she exclaimed, lightly punching Sonny's arm while grabbing the blunt from his hands and taking another puff.

He rolled his eyes. “I’m sorry, I haven't obtained my doctorate in Joint Making, but you apparently have. So fill me in: how exactly does one infuse fruity flavors into pieces of paper?” Sonny asked the perfect balance of sincerity and smartassness in his voice. Only moments later, he would feel his phone vibrate in his pocket.

"I don't fucking know," the brunette scoffed, rolling her eyes but smirking to let her friend know she wasn't annoyed. She noticed Sonny pulling out his phone from his pocket, and pointed at the device with her chin. "You have your phone in your hand: fucking Google that shit. I'm not an encyclopedia."

“Uh huh,” Sonny nodded, though he didn’t actually hear what she was saying.

Truth be told, he was more concerned by the continuous friend request he’s been getting by one person. Even as Marisol kept talking, Sonny’s eyes never left his phone. He was trying to figure out exactly why this person looked so familiar and why she seemed so adamant on adding him to his Insta.

Realizing that Sonny was ignoring her, Marisol scoffed again, muttered something under her breath and went back to smoking her blunt. Her green eyes scanned the empty greens of the football field as she took each drag, letting the distant sounds of the school fade away into background noise and feeling all the muscles in her body start to relax. It was only after she’d consumed three-quarters of her blunt that the girl realized her friend hadn’t said a single word for the past few minutes.

"The fuck's got you so damn quiet all of a sudden?" she finally burst out, scooting as close to him as she could and snatching his phone from his hand. Laughing gleefully, Mari took a peek at the device's screen and her smile immediately turned into a confused, curious frown. "Daniella Aguilar… Who the fuck is Daniella Aguilar?" the girl asked Sonny, one arm extended towards her friend to hand him back his phone and her other demanding hand resting on her hip.

“Hell if I know. She’s been sending me friend requests all over my socials for over a month. No mutuals or anything,” Sonny rolled his eyes. “I wish I did know her so I knew why the fuck she keeps sending me requests.” As he spoke, Sonny just had noticed how genuinely bothered by it she was.“You’re not jealous, are you?” He asked her, nudging her shoulder. “I mean, she is pretty cute.” He said teasing her again in the way only Sonny could do without fail.

For what seemed like the millionth time that day, Marisol scoffed and rolled her eyes at Sonny. "You fucking wish!" she cried out, forcing out a laugh and lightly shoving him. "You remember where being jealous of someone got me the last time? Miss me with that gay shit again, man. I'm over that."

“You’re the one who didn’t seem happy that I was getting a request from this Daniella person. But hey, whatever makes you sleep at night.” As he shrugged, his eyes and, as a result, his mind went back to the mysterious Latina girl that was sending him requests. “So, like, what should I do? Accept it? If I do that, she’ll probably DM me or track me down cause, as you know, I’m not exactly secretive on my socials. Geotagging everywhere I go and shit.”

“You think you’re fucking Justin Bieber or something? Sonny, nobody in their right mind is going to stalk you. They wouldn’t last five fucking minutes around you: trust me. At one point you’re just gonna drop one of your typical dumbass comments and the stalker will be so shook that they’ll have to say something.”

“I know I’m not Justin Bieber,” Sonny said to Marisol, looking at her with a smile. “I’m a lot hotter than that delinquent is.”

“Sure, Jan.”

As he was never one to lack confidence in himself, Sonny let the smirk on his face last for a moment longer before returning to the topic at hand. “But for real, this chick isn’t taking no for an answer.”

Marisol let out a frustrated sound. “Then stop being a little bitch, accept the damn request and just get it over with already. There’s always the ‘Block’ button and a restraining order if they turn out to be a creep.”

Again he rolled his eyes. “Can’t you just be supportive of my crisis?” He asked, almost in a whining-like manner, which was a total feigning moment for him.

"Not when it's over something so stupid. Since when is the Tony Stark-levels-of-arrogant Sonny Drake intimidated by some cute random chick's friend request? Go on, bitch: accept the damn thing."

As he just stared at the request, he went to her profile and scrolled through some photos. He didn’t know if she just found him appealing or if it was something more, but Marisol was right about one thing: he accepts it and if they’re creepy or something close to it, he can just block them. Not like there’s a lot that can happen. Worse case, he blocks them and that’s the end of that.

And in a matter of moments, Sonny clicked accept. “There, it’s done. Happy?”

"If it gets you to finally shut the fuck up about it, then yes: I'm happy." Mari admitted briskly, taking the last puff out of her consumed blunt before putting it out against the sole of her shoe. “I don’t get what the big deal is. She probably just wants to get with you.”

He shook her head at her. “I thought you said weed relaxes you? You’re very unrelaxed right now. You got something going on that you haven’t shared with the class yet?” Sonny curiously asked.

“I’m fine,” the girl snapped, pulling her phone out of her pocket and cursing under her breath when she noticed the time. “Fuck, I forgot to take my pills. Let me just-” she trailed off, digging into her backpack in search of the key to her sanity. However, just as her hands wrapped around the prescription bottle she was so furiously searching for, she felt her phone vibrating in her pocket. And when she pulled it out to see what was going on, the brunette’s expression shifted from one of annoyance to one of sheer delight.

From: The Beanstalk
hey
sorry i havent texted
my phone broke
i broke it
wanna hang out tonight?
i miss you :(

“Oh thank fucking Christ!” Marisol muttered, breathing out a sigh of relief she didn’t even know she was holding in the first place. It was then when it dawned on her that this had been the real reason why she’d been so snappy the past few hours, and not because of the missed pill. The texts from Salem proved to her that things between them hadn’t been messed up beyond repair after their night together after all. Instead, they were going on with business as usual.

What a goddamned relief.

To: The Beanstalk
hey you
everything ok????
parents grounded me bc of the other night lol but you know ill make up some excuse 2 hang out
i fucking miss u too 😔
see u tonight 😘❤

While she went through her phone, Sonny felt the need to go through his one last time. He might as well do some researching on who exactly Daniella Aguilar was. It wasn’t easy because simply Google searches proved to useless. The only thing that Sonny had to go off of was the singular Instagram account and even that left a lot to be desired for. Some photos of her and some memes, but nothing that would scream who she was to him and why she was insistent on having him on Instagram.

Meanwhile, Marisol’s phone vibrated again with another stream of texts from Salem that lifted her already-heightened mood.

From: The Beanstalk
I'm okay
we'll talk when i see you
srry i got you grounded
i cant wait to see you :)
you are all i have here

Sonny pocketed his phone and leaned over, his head resting on her shoulder and he saw the texts her and Salem were exchanging. Quickly, he snatched her phone like she had done to him. “Oh, well isn’t this the cutest thing I’ve ever read!” Sonny teased her as he stood up. “ ‘Oh Salem, I loooooveee youuuu’ !” He teased her again, speaking in his best Marisol imitation he could muster with an exaggeration on the feminine aspect. He would then follow it with kissy face noises and with the puckered lips to boot.

“Give that back, you piece of shit!” the red-faced girl cried out, visibly annoyed but letting out a round of nervous laughter.

Sonny stepped back a couple of feet, reading through their texts. “Damn, you two really are sappy, huh?” He laughed his way along the top of the bleachers.

“Fuck you,” she snapped, following Sonny along the bleachers on the hunt for her phone. When she finally reached him, she snatched the device from his hands and walked back to get her belongings, praying that the heat in her face subsided.

He was still laughing when she snatched back her phone and he looked at her, seeing the noticeable tomato red cheeks. “You’re actually blushing, aren’t you? Oh, this is just too great. You must have it bad for the Italian bean.” Sonny was genuinely amused by this sudden development. Even if she tried to deny it, the writing was all over her cheeks.

“Number one: it’s a beanstalk, not a mere bean. The dude’s fucking hung, if you know what I mean,” the girl called out, stomping back in Sonny’s direction with both their backpacks in her arms. “And number two: I don’t have it bad for anyone. He was just a good lay. That’s all there is to it.” Mari finished, pushing the boy’s backpack hard against his chest.

He grunted from that hit. She was small, but being the daughter of Soleil Jameson, Marisol Castillos sure could pack a punch. After he recovered, a smile was thrown her way, followed by more chuckling. “Sure Jan, whatever you say. If you say you don’t got it bad for him, then I believe you.” Of course, Sonny didn’t actually believe her but if she had to tell herself she didn’t have a genuine ounce of romantic feelings for him, then he’ll let her think he believed her.

The sound of the bell signaling the end of their lunch period stopped Marisol from retaliating against her best friend. So for the sake of keeping their newly established peace, the short girl merely shook her head, linked her arm with Sonny’s, and together they made their way back into the high school building of King’s Academy.

[Venus]

The rest of the impromptu lunch-time three-way went pretty well. The two veterans of King’s Academy offered as many tips and tricks as they could to the newest California transplant, and shared contact info. After that, Sunshine departed to attend to other business. Shawna and Kellie, meanwhile, had subtly decided that maybe they should have a discussion about where things stood after yesterday and the conversation at the table.

They needed somewhere quiet, somewhere that was sparsely attended by the students of the school. A place where they could have serious talks and know it wouldn’t be entering the gossip sphere immediately. Luckily, Shawna’s previous years of isolation were spent in the perfect place for such things.

The two grabbed the remaining pieces of their lunches, Shawna stashing her remaining cupcakes in her locker and grabbing Pepsi money for Kellie en route to the classics section of the library. There were a few tables for studying the old tomes, but they were never used for such purposes. At least not as far as the former honor student knew. So it would be perfect.

As the two sat down next to each other in between the works of the masters of Greek tragedy and people who wish they were said masters, Shawna took the unusual move of engaging in conversation first. “Hey,” she started. “So I’m sorry if inviting Sunshine to the table was out of line or anything. I just felt sorry for her, being that lone student without a chair. I know that feeling. It sucks. But I should have asked if that was all right.”

Kellie Anne waved a dismissive hand. “You’re fine, sweetie!” she said softly, placing her hand on top of Shawna’s and letting her thumb softly graze the back of it. “I didn’t mind in the slightest. Don’t forget that four years ago I was the new student here too.”

The feeling of Kellie Anne’s hand on her own was producing that kind of electric feel that was still new to Shawna but was oh so intoxicating. Better than the drugs she had been turning too, better than the sugar rushes and the enveloping warmths. It was so good. She wanted more. But the question was, were the desires mutual?

Shawna coughed slightly. “I’m glad. I’m glad, she seems like a good person. I mean, first impressions are everything so far, but I think she’ll be a solid friend.” She smiled up at the dancer in front of her. “So... um… Sunday. That…” She was struggling. “That was… awesome. And wonderful. And I want to do it again. With you. I mean… if that’s all right. I mean…” This was completely foreign ground for her, and while usually good with her words, she was almost flustered trying to figure out how to proceed. “Um… I’m sorry. I’ve… um… I’ve never done this sort of thing.”

“If it makes you feel any better, I’ve never done this sort of thing either,” Kellie admitted with a laugh, resting her head on Shawna’s shoulder. “I mean, obviously I know how to kiss and stuff, but I’ve never been with a girl bef- actually, that’s not entirely true, but that’s a story for another day!” she confessed, giggling for a few seconds.

As the other girl’s head hit her shoulder, the feelings continued to well up in Shawna. It just felt good to have that kind of contact with someone, anyone. She wanted to make sure there was more of it. She moved her hand up to pat Kellie’s head, almost reassuring herself as much as her … dare she say it?

“You’re a world ahead of me, Kellie,” Shawna told the dancer. “And I want you to show me that world… as your girlfriend. I mean, if that’s cool with you. It’s totally cool with me. And like we don’t even have to do that, we can just take it slow and I dunno…”

When Shawna dropped the word ‘girlfriend’, Kellie Anne froze on the spot, body quickly stiffening. Although she’d never been one to shy away from anything related to feelings, things between the two girls were certainly going too fast. Yes, they had spent the better part of Sunday afternoon baring their souls to each other and kissing. But to go from a kiss to throwing the world ‘girlfriend’ around was a whole different scenario… And something the dancer wasn’t ready for just yet.

“It’s not that I don’t want to...” Kellie trailed off uncomfortably, looking down as she placed her hands in her lap. She was silent for a few seconds, trying to find the right words to explain her predicament without hurting Shawna’s feelings. Finally, she cleared her throat and continued. “It’s just- I’m still hung up on Max. As much as it sucks to admit it, I still carry around all these feelings for him, no matter how many times he screws up. I wish I didn’t, but I do. And it wouldn’t be fair to you to rush into something when things are still so raw for me. Shawna, I know we’ve only known each other a day, but I already feel this insane connection with you. I don’t want to rush into anything and ruin the only good thing that seems to be happening to me so far.”

Shawna knew it. She had pushed things too quickly. It was all over that first sentence. How could be she be so stupid? She literally met this girl yesterday! Why the hell did she have to go and throw that label on it so soon? She didn’t even know what she was doing! Asking someone to go steady like that? She wrecked everything!

Then Max’s name came up again. Much like it did in the lunchtime conversation with Sunshine. ‘Of course. Fucking Max. I’m going to hurt that guy so fucking badly.’ And then the hope. The admission of the connection. The way Kellie said Shawna’s name. It wasn’t wrecked. It was just...fragile.

Shawna straightened herself up. “No, of course... I mean, that’s why I said, we don’t have to be rushing into that. We can totally take it slow and yeah, not worry about the whole label thing. Forget I said it! Just the sugar rush talking. But, um, yeah, I mean, we can totally keep things cool for now. Until you’re ready. I can wait. I think you’re worth waiting for, Cupcake.” She rubbed Kellie Anne’s knee as if to try and emphasize just how cool she was with everything, even if she was still kicking herself for bringing it up so clumsily in the first place.

Shawna’s reassurance that things were still fine between them definitely eased Kellie’s conscience, and her decision to wait until she was ready to open herself up to love again warmed her heart in a way she didn’t think possible. After the tragedy that was her failed relationship with Max, the young woman had been convinced that there would never be anyone else. But in less than twenty-four hours, Shawna Josi had proved that there was definitely a light at the end of the tunnel… And Kellie was curious to see what would happen next.

Overwhelmed by hope and affection, the dancer cupped one of Shawna’s cheeks with her hand and locked their lips together in a soft, sweet kiss. She let it go on for what seemed like forever, and it was only when she felt herself losing her breath that Kellie broke away.

“You’re amazing, Wolfie,” Kellie whispered softly, giving Shawna another quick kiss. “I’m lucky to have found you.”

The green-eyed girl did her best to make that kiss last forever. There may not have been icing on their lips but in a way it was almost sweeter. Knowing that there was something there, even after the missteps, it was huge for someone still trying to figure out just how to actually negotiate this whole love thing. Was it love? Shawna wasn’t going to say yet. Not after what happened. Not after they agreed to take it slow. But for someone who hadn’t really experienced it, she had a good idea this was something like it.

“And I’m lucky that fat guy took my bribe. Best $20 I ever spent getting the chance to meet you,” she told Kellie Anne. She returned a quick kiss of her own.

“You make it sound like I’m some kind of celebrity you had to pay to meet!” the shorter girl said with a laugh, letting some content silence linger between them before nudging Shawna with her elbow. “And hey: just because we’re not dating doesn’t mean we can’t have a sequel of Sunday where we just go where life takes us...” Kellie told Shawna, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively at her and letting out a flirtatious giggle.

Shawna didn’t have the eyebrow wiggle in her arsenal, but she definitely was picking up on what Kellie was dropping. She giggled in response and rested her elbow on the table, gazing at the dancer. “I would totally be down for another round of something like that,” she confirmed before dropping her arm down to prep for the return of the bad British accent. “Whatevah moy queen deesoires.” She grinned, knowing that Shakespeare himself would have thrown a book at her for that performance. But it didn’t matter to her. Not now. Now in Kellie’s presence.

“You’re an idiot,” Kellie said in between giggles, giving Shawna another deep kiss before wrapping her arms around the girl for a hug.

The Shawna of six months ago would have taken that as a straight-up insult. The Shawna of right now wouldn’t want to be anything but at this moment. She returned the kiss and the hug to her … friend, and she was perfectly content to do so. For now, tragedy had been averted.

[Sugar and Spite]

_{Staring Oliver and Sunshine}

While he was on his way back from lunch, Oliver Grayson would find himself in a total cliche situation. Staring at his feet, not paying an attention to where he was going, the young man bumped into a… non-familiar person causing her to drop her books. Oliver could have sworn he knew everyone at Kings Academy. Nonetheless, he bent down to help her pick up the papers strewn across the hall.

”Sorry about that. Guess I should pay more attention to where I’m going, huh?”

The girl laughed. ”Don’t worry. This happens a lot more than you’d actually think. I like to blame it on all the daydreaming I do.”

Handing the last of the papers back to her, he stood up, brushing off his pants. ”I don’t think I’ve ever seen you around here before,” he said, extending a hand politely. ”I’m Oliver Grayson, resident Gossip and Secret Keeper of Kings Academy.”

Stuffing her books into her bag, she shook Olivers hand. ”Sunshine Hollingsworth. Resident new person and LA transfer,” she said with a smile. ”Say… could you help me find the office? I thought I knew where it was, but I keep walking in circles and ---”

Oliver chuckled. ”Right this way, Ms. Sunshine.” Leading the way down the hall, it was hard for Oliver to focus on the conversation with Sunshine. He was still trying to make up his mind on something pretty major - well, major for him, anyway. Lucky for him, Sunshine had experience with these things.

”Something on your mind?”

”What? N-... well, yeah, there is, actually. I um… Can I ask you something? I mean, I don’t really have anyone to talk to about it, and you’re new so you don’t have an opinion of me a--”

”Just ask the question, dude,” Sable said as she stopped walking.

”It’s not really a question, I just need an opinion, but.” He paused for a moment, taking a deep breath. ”I’m gay. Or at least, I thought I was gay. I’ve never been in a relationship and I’ve always been attracted to guys. I mean, I even watch gay porn.” Oliver stopped, visibly wincing at his choice of words. Sunshine gave him a nod of encouragement. ”Anyway. The school did some weird experiment and I got paired with this really great girl. Gorgeous, awesome personality. We ended up kissing and now I’m sort of questioning things? I’ve never had a problem with looking at girls, you know, and thinking ‘hey, she’s pretty’ and I’ve never had a problem doing that with guys either. It’s just… I liked the kiss? And now --”

”Dude. Take a deep breath. You’re turning blue. I get it.’”

”You do,” he asked, obviously confused.

”Mhm. I thought I was straight, then I ended up kissing a girl and found out I liked that too. I went from being straight, to bi, to pan. Romantic, that is. I’m demisexual. Sexualitites are a complicated thing and no one can blame you for being confused.”

”So how do I know?”

”You just do. And I think you already do, or else you wouldn’t be so weirded out.”

”Okay, Sunshine, but how do I know?

The girl rolled her eyes. ”Kiss me.”

Shocked, Olivers eyes widened. ”I - what?”

”You liked the kiss with this homecoming girl, right? So if you’re uncertain because if it was the girl, or if it was because she was a girl --- just kiss me.”

Oliver was torn on what to do. No girl - no person had ever said those words to him. Chalking it up to one of those ‘what the hell moments’, Oliver did as told. It was a slow kiss, lasting for only a few moments, but it was long enough.

”So?”

”I - I.. uh… Your lips are really soft,” the young man commented, his face beginning to turn red.

”Did you like the kiss?”

Oliver didn’t know many things when it came to girls, but he was pretty sure that this was a trick question. He gave the best and most honest answer. ”Yeah.”

”And have you ever kissed a guy before?” Oliver nodded. ”Did you like that kiss?”

”I - yeah. Yeah, I did,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck.

”Congrats buddy. You’re bi. Well, I’m 95% sure you’re bi. Just go tell this girl you like her, okay?”

Olivers face lit up. ”Right. Uh.. right. Thanks,” he said, taking off in the opposite direction.

”Hello! Office! Remember,” Sunshine shouted after him.

”Straight down the hall, take your first left and it’s the second door on your right,” he called back, not bothering to turn around. He was on a mission now.

[spooner]

_{Starring: Aaliyah | Julie}

“Loser! You’re such a loser. Why is it that you can crush kids in chess but get crushed by words in a cafeteria?” Aaliyah thought to herself. Maybe if she sent her mom a text now and went to the nurses off she could go home early, save herself from any more embarrassment and wallow while she watched the magic school bus with some ice cream. That was until a voice interrupted her isolation. Startled like a deer in headlights her head shot up and realized it was none other than the red streak known as Julie. “Oh no she’s here to ask me to stay away from her, of course! It’s only natural for her after that performance” or at least that’s what she thought before she asked to sit next to her.

Her cheeks were stung red as nervous sweat began to slid down her spine. “Uhhh…Y-Ye—yeah mi casa es tu casa right?” her years of Spanish finally paying off “That was the worst joke ever, you fool!” Aaliyah still could not detect any hostility from the freckled beauty. “I don’t usually eat lunch here it’s either at a table or in the bathroom—” she tried to pull those last few words back into her mouth, but she couldn’t. Her tongue was moving faster than her mind could account for. Her laugh was quite smooth and natural, hopefully she was laughing with Aaliyah and not at her. Another question fired from her bandolier, “Uhm no I don’t think so?” but it was no use, she couldn’t hold it in anymore.

“The bathroom?!” Julie exclaimed horrified. “That won’t do… you have a reserved seat at our table from now on.” she smiled softly towards Aaliyah with a worried tinge in her blue eyes. Has she really been such a distant ice queen that people would rather eat in the bathroom than to approach her?

“Actually there is something…I just, I don’t know. I’ve never been good at making friends that aren’t in my “lane” and even then, they’re not my friends. I’m just a brain to them, you know the ace in the hole” she continued, “I just always looked up to you guys since the beginning, you and Chanel. You’re not like the other girls, you don’t follow anyone and you guys shine on your own. And here I am a nerd who can’t even manage to look at you guys let alone say more than two words to you. So yeah if you want to leave now you can it’s fine. I’ll probably go home next period anyways.” To her surprise Aaliyah felt much better after venting, although she wasn’t sure if Julie wanted to hear all that.

As her new friend spoke Julie kept her eyes concentrated on Aaliyah’s face while she unpacked her lunch from her bag. It was a small box neatly wrapped in a flower patterned handkerchief which after a few movements of her hands revealed a plastic container filled with freshly cut fruit. “That’s very sweet of you to say Aaliyah. But it does sadden me a little that you feel that you don’t think that you can come talk to us whenever.” She bit her lower lip in thought before she continued “From now on you sit with us, ok?”

“Chocolate milk?” she asked holding up the brown carton

The redhead eyed the carton for a few seconds before offering a tight smile “No… no that’s okay” she smiled as she held up her glass bottle filled with ice water. “Got to stay hydrated you know? Also I’m lactose intolerant”

A reserved seat at the table of Queens?! She was definitely dreaming, this was all too surreal for her. A seat at that table was like trying to get a reservation at Dorsia, you had to know someone. She pinched her skin to make sure she wasn’t dreaming or concussed herself like she usually did. Aaliyah could feel a slight discomfort in Julie, but couldn’t tell where it was coming from. Whatever was the case she did not want to ruin her already cruddy reputation. If she wasn’t perfect enough already, her lunch bag and handkerchief combo sealed the deal. There was no one that prepared and aesthetically pleasing with boxed lunch outside the Japanese. And here Aaliyah was stuck with her tried and true brown paper bag that looked like it had seen better days.

Julie’s reply added pressure to Aaliyah’s chest, she was never good at conveying emotions or speaking her mind without coming off bad. “No no no! That’s not what I meant! It’s not you really it’s me” she couldn’t have picked a more cliché line if she could. Aaliyah was already breaking up with her first gf when they weren’t even dating. “What I mean is I don’t think you guys are too intimidating or that others fear you like they do Miss Colombia, but…there’s just no spot in that crowd for people like me” she pleaded, trying to take the heat off of them and place it on her instead.

“Of course! I’ll sit with you guys from now on. Do you guys wear pink on Wednesdays? Can I only wear jeans or track pants on Friday?” she asked. Aaliyah retracted her hand faster than light spilling some of the milk on her clothes without noticing, “Oh..oh I’m sorry I didn’t know!”

Julie let out a small surprised sound as the milk splashed on her skirt “Oh no need to worry…” she searched her purse for some napkins and started to dab at the dark wet spot. “And no, no plastic rules for us.” she couldn’t help but laugh at how flustered Aaliyah became as she tried to hold her own in their conversation. Maybe she did put out a intimidating aura? She made a mental note to ask around about that.

As they sat there enjoying their lunch in the sun Julie surveyed Aaliyah for a little bit “You know… you really have gorgeous hair.” she said as her mind was already going at the speed of light thinking of ideas of what to do with it. “I just think you need help with…” she paused choosing her words carefully “Styling.” she said finally. “You should come over some day! Chanel is the best when it comes to hair. Would you be down for a little makeover?” her eyes sparkled. This was something she was passionate about and it really showed when she spoke about it.

Aaliyah was just as horrified as Julie was by the splashing lactose drenching her threads, luckily for the two of them she wasn’t deathly allergic. “Well that’s a relief” she laughed candidly, “Oh did I say that out loud? I didn’t mean to. Sometimes I do that so just ignore me” she said trying to nip her rambling in the bud before it could get any more out of hand. Things were finally starting to settle between the two and the space for her to get to know the red queen was finally starting to reveal itself. Hopefully the game of 21 questions wouldn’t be to painfully awkward.

Her cheeks turned bright red once more as the compliment caught her off guard, “Thank you, sometimes I never know what to do with it, so I just let it hang. I’m sure your red hair is more coveted though, now that people are past gingers not having souls anymore” she had an awful habit of putting a foot in her mouth when speaking. Her inexperience was clearly shining through. ”Okay breathe Aaliyah, she just invited you over her house and a makeover with Chanel. This is some Tyra Banks shit. Don’t screw it up!” Aaliyah did her best to compose herself, “Of course! I would love too. I’m sure my mom would love this. Are sleepovers still a thing?” curious as to know if slice of life tropes existed in real life as well.

“We’ll make it a thing.” Julie said with a wink as she popped a piece of strawberry into her mouth.

[AlteredTundra]

_{Day — Saturday, October 27th
Time — 7:55-:8:30PM
Location — The Salvador Residence}

Kavi’s life had improved immensely when he was finally able to get the nose cast off of his face. After two weeks of having to struggle with that clunky cast on his face, after an early morning appointment on the 21st that caused him to miss the first two periods of school, Kavi’s doctor finally removed it and he was able to feel his nose again. It was one of those moments that he wanted to savor. He had taken the freeing moment of being able to scratch his nose whenever and however he wanted. Even though it still was a little tender, it was healed and the first thing he did when they left the doctor’s office was scratch it and rub it like a lamp.

Throughout that week, amid enjoying life a lot more than he had been, Kavi thought about a lot of things that were happening as of late. Not counting how the school administration, much to the displeasure of the student body and their student administration led by President Bailey, had decided not to throw a Halloween-themed dance, which they cited Homecoming as the reason why none of the students deserved it. As understandable as it was, Kavi simply didn’t agree. There was a need for some kind of party. He hadn’t heard really much of anything about anyone throwing such a party. So, after school on the 22nd, after there was a section of the morning announcements dedicated to this subject, that’s he decided right then and there to throw his name into the empty hat even though he wasn’t exactly sure how the fuck he was going to manage it on short notice, but he enjoyed a good challenge.

Throughout the day, Kavi had been going to just about everyone he could: The Misfits group who he frequently hung out with (though not as much recently due to his current relationship status with Ariel), the Unholy Trinity plus Aaliyah, Stella, the nerds he previously tormented, the jocks, the other group he belonged to. He went to them for both help and to get a headcount of who he should expect. Surprisingly, Kavi’s reputation among his senior class was a lot higher than he thought it was. He figured, given his short stint as the resident bully and overall his previous casanova ways, Kavi wasn’t well liked but everyone he talked to (well most of everyone) received him well.

As he would go home that same day, it seemed all the chips were falling where they needed because his mother told him that she and Kai were going to be out of town starting tomorrow and all the way to Sunday. At the moment that conversation was happening, he did everything he possibly could to refrain from jumping out of his seat from the pure joy. And when they explained that Kavi’s grandfather was sick and they needed to fly to Sydney to be with him for a few weeks, Kavi was soon given the explanation that he and his sister were to remain home. Kavi was old enough to drive them to and from home and there was enough food and money left on the emergency credit card so they didn’t run out of money.

And in that moment, aside from giving his parents his most convincing face of well-wishes for his grandfather, he was already thinking about what he was going to use that money for: party favors, costume, getting his college cousin to buy him alcohol, pay for a DJ, and, of course, hire some security to ensure no cops got through (or at least would give them a heads up for when the cops would arrive). He was so giddy that on Friday, the day before the party, Kavi was the happiest he had been.

At lunch, Kavi sent a mass-invite text that read as followed:

PARTY @8 PM! WEAR SOMETHING HOT! OPEN CRIB! REFRESHMENTS PROVIDED!

Following that text and the next couple of hours, Kavi had a busy twenty-four to twenty-seven hours to prepare and prepare he did. At the end of it, though his parents’ house was pre-decorated with minimal Halloween decorations (some spider webs and the like) along the pathway, Kavi’s connections with some of the theater nerds, was enough to add some style. Flashing lights with some eerie sound effects gave the allure of a legit Halloween atmosphere and fog machines to act as the smoke to even further the vibe of horror. The strobe lights and sounds were motion sensor-activated, so whenever someone stepped foot within ten feet of the front door, immediately the greeted by that and gargoyle props that would prop up, roaring in the faces of those who wished to enter. The door itself was concealed by a heavy layer of fake spider webs made from thinly cut cotton and lightly brushed with black and orange to match the classic Halloween theme.

And when one rung the doorbell, it was even replaced with a sequence of demonic laughs instead of your typical doorbell ding. Kavi wanted to go all out. When he hosted a party, it was one to remember, but the front outside was only the start.

Once inside, Kavi’s house wasn’t even recognizable. At every corner, there are trails of spider webs, decorations for the staircase rail laced with lights and fake blood fur. Ornaments of skulls, bats, pumpkins, and more skulls, bats, and pumpkins were all around from the foyer to the kitchen, and all the way to the back patio entrance. Refreshments could be found both inside and outside since Kavi liked to cover all of his bases before stepping up to bat. All of the liquid refreshments were alcohol and found in a tombstone-shaped cooler with green ice keeping the bottles and cans as cold as possible, dirt cake and finger food galore were found along with another table beside the beverage table. Anything from blood jello shots to various alcohol drinks were made available as well. Green, fruit-flavored punch rests on a table in a black cauldron-like bowl (along with a non-alcoholic brother bowl of the same stuff).

Outside, aside from more of the same refreshments being made available, Halloween-themed activities like apple bobbing, “Halloween Shot Challenge”, in which one would take as many shots as they can handle within a short time limit of one minute. Others include a bobbing alternative that’s not apples. Instead of apples, Kavi bought a bunch of brownie mix, stirred it up until it was a paste-like consistency so that it resembled dirt and put a bunch of gummy worms in it, dubbed “Worm Bob”. Additional games set up include a Halloween-themed beer pong.

“Done with some time to spare!”

With all the planning done and the party just an hour away, he had just enough time to put the final preparations on his costume of a construction worker and text Ariel to way before anyone else was set to arrive. The DJ had started to play the music, with a mix of horror-themed bops, classic renditions of horror themes with lyrics, and just overall any song that fit the vibe of Halloween was included in the playlist.

Just a moment later, the doorbell rang and, as Kavi would open it up, the first wave of party guests flew in.

“Welcome! Glad you could make it,” Kavi greeted them with a smile, “and glad the display outside didn’t scare you pussies off." He laughed his way into another smile.

[ineffable]

_{An @Ejected and @ineffable Collaboration}

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It was around eight o'clock in the evening when Carter pulled into the driveway of the Fielders residence. He was tapping his fingers on the bottom of the steering wheel and bobbing his freshly styled head to the sounds of Jay-Z and Kanye West that were pumping loudly through the speakers of his cherry red Lexus. Halloween had always been a favorite holiday of Carter's; In fact, the older Carter grew, the closer Halloween got to dethroning Christmas as his favorite holiday. Ever since he found out the shocking truth about Santa Claus, Christmas slowly but surely began to lose its magic. Halloween, on the other hand, had many characteristics that made it such a unique and enjoyable day. From the spooky decorations, to the costumes, to the concept of Trick-or-Treating as a whole, Halloween was surely hard for Carter to hate. Due to this, it came as no surprise to anyone in Carter's household when he decided to go all out and get a bit creative with his Halloween costume. He'd gotten his suit custom made, had his hair cut into the necessary style, let his mother apply a bit of makeup, and had even spent a considerable amount of money on a brand new electric guitar to complete the ensemble. Now, he was more than ready to spend the rest of his Halloween night at Kavi Salvador's party.

After putting his car into park, Carter picked up his cell phone and sent a quick text message to Georgia Fielders, the girl who'd agreed to tag along with him to the party over school lunch. "I'm outside," the boy subconsciously spoke aloud as his fingers glided across his cell phone screen, "You ready to go?" Carter then tossed his phone back into its spot in the cup holder before taking those few minutes he'd have to wait for Georgia to arrive to touch up his hair and makeup in the mirror.

Georgie tidied up her suit jacket and pulled her tie tight before she admired herself in the mirror. Her hair was tucked up in a low bun and she’d drawn a mustache across the top of her upper lip. Along with the crisp white shirt she was wearing, the beautiful top hat that she’d won in a bidding war on Ebay against chappielover7, and the cane she’d borrowed from her grandpa, she was pretty happy with her choice of costume. She’d always loved Charlie Chaplin and her brother Roggie always did a spot on impression of the comedian. She applied a quick layer of mascara and grabbed her buzzing phone before she headed out of the door. Along the way out she sent a quick photo of her outfit to her family group chat and waved at Carter who she saw through the driver’s window of his car.

Moving closer to the vehicle she rounded it to reach the shotgun seat and climbed in, smiling at Carter’s costume as she did so. Man was that great, Georgie even spotted the guitar in the back. Too bad she didn’t bring her camera, she was sure that Carter would’ve made for a pretty photoshoot. ”Thanks for picking me up! My friends don’t usually show up to these sorts of things. They just take a picture of their costume and go trick treating like 5 year olds. Not that I have a problem with that but just...well, it’s a party and I’d like to go. It was nice of you to invite me along for the ride there.” Georgie confessed and shrugged. ”Your outfit is great though!”

Carter couldn't help but crack a smile as Georgie spoke, and it was when she mentioned trick-or-treating that he reached around to the back of his seat and pulled out a large plastic bag full of candy. "Nothing wrong with embracing your inner 5 year old sometimes," the young man said as he sat the bag in her lap and shifted his car in reverse, "I made my rounds before I came to pick you up. You won't believe how much candy these old, rich couples give out." Soon, they were on their way to the Salvador residence; as usual, Carter sped down the road without a care in the world. "I like your costume too, by the way. Charlie Chaplin... that's pretty creative."

Georgie’s eyes widened as she looked at the bag of candy, her hands reaching almost of their own accord towards the goodies.
”I absolutely aspire to be you one day, you know that, Carter?” She reached a hand into the bag and closed her eyes. Georgie had always liked surprises, especially ones involving candy. Her fingers slipped around a small box and she brought it out. Nerds! She loved them...well, she loved all candy. As she opened the box and poured some out in her hand she sneaked a peek at Carter. He looked so happy, so carefree. She guessed that they were alike in that way. She’d heard things about him, of course, but maybe she didn’t want to believe it. She was all for having fun but if it turned dangerous, she’d much rather stay away. Knocking herself out of her thoughts she responded to Carter: ”Thank you! I love Charlie Chaplin, he never ceases to make me laugh.” Georgie smiled as she remembered back to her childhood, when she’d sat on the couch between her brothers and watched as her parents smiled at them as they laughed, imitated good ol’ Chaplin and threw popcorn at each other. But that was gone. Georgie’s smile slipped off her face if only for an instant before she shook out another handful of Nerds and offered them to Carter. ”Want some?”

"Nah, I actually think I've had more than enough candy for tonight," Carter said, shaking his head and letting out a brief chuckle. Although Carter mostly had his attention focused on the road, he certainly hadn't missed the way Georgie's smile had momentarily faltered; after a quick internal debate, Carter decided that he'd try to figure out exactly what was going on in that head of hers. "Seems like you spaced out for a sec, though. Something on your mind?"

Georgie tossed the Nerds into her own mouth instead and stared out the side window at the road going by them. “Ah, it’s nothing...It’s probably just nostalgia.” Georgie brushed off his question. Though glad that he had cared enough to ask her (and quite surprised that he’d noticed something was wrong) she didn’t want to talk about it to anyone yet...she never did. Georgie remained silent, something unlike of her to do and waited for Carter to do something, anything at all to distract her.

Not wanting to pry any further, Carter simply accepted her answer, nodded his head and continued his drive down the road. They were just a little ways away from the Salvador residence when the sudden silence began to bother him; It was when Carter decided to turn the radio back on that this silence ceased. Soon after, the sound of Michael Jackson's voice filled the air, and his all too familiar tune began to play through the car speakers. Almost instantly, Carter began to smile and tap his fingers along to the beat. He paused to say, "looks like everyone's in the Halloween spirit tonight," before finally giving in and singing with the music. Though being very off-key, Carter grinned even wider and turned up the volume; he only stopped singing to take a quick peek at his passenger, his eyes practically prompting her to sing along.

Georgie realized how awkward it all was but couldn’t bring herself to speak. Her shy side didn’t come out often, but when it did she was brought almost always to great embarrassment because of it. Suddenly the familiar beginning tones of Thriller spilled out of the car’s speakers and Georgie felt a grin creeping across her face. She’d used to dance to this as a kid and embarrassingly so. In fact, she was pretty sure there was a hometape of the concert she’d done for her class back then. She started to tap her foot to the beat before she turned to catch Carter’s eyes and his comment. Shaking her head, Georgie couldn’t resist the urge to sing along, finally giving into temptation and belting out the song lyrics with Carter. Somewhere between the pauses in the song she managed to slip in a quiet ”Thank you, Carter”

Soon, the pair had arrived at their destination; Carter parked his car on the side of the road, only finally cutting the engine when the song had finished playing. "It's really no problem," the boy said as he leaned over and grabbed his guitar from the back seat. And after one final glance in his mirror, Carter turned to Georgie with a wide grin plastered across his face, and said, "Now, you ready to go get this party startled?"

[Hoekage]

_{Time //Friday 8:45 PM}

_{Location // Astor Residence}

_{Starring:
Thot Patrol & Diving for Hoes & Desayuno en Tiffany}

🎃 🎃 🎃 🎃 🎃 🎃 🎃

The past two weeks had been a blur, between successfully avoiding he who shall not be named and trying to make up with her friends she disappeared on, Yessi had been all over the place. Which included this very moment, as she tried on the fourth costume out of a seemingly endless number of options for tonight. A loud groan expelled into the large room as she looked over herself in the full body mirror, turning her hips this way and that.

“How the hell is this making my ass look flat.” The grumble held the weight of her disgust as she tore out of the hippie-esque jumpsuit and tried on the next costume she had laid out, “Well...Fifth ones a charm.” With the completed ensemble hugging her curves and making that booty pop (Okay sis!), Astraia knew immediately this one was it. A wide smile took up her face as she threw open the bathroom door drawing a black leather paddle from her waist and aimed it at the Colombian princess who was adding the finishing touches to her costume.

“Thot Patrol! Put your hands in the air, move and I spank you!” Astraia yelled barely able to retain a serious tone as she stepped towards the Audrey Hepburn, pretending to be confused as she looked over her best friend, “Oh sorry miss, uh... Have you seen a short, loud-mouthed Colombian girl around here recently? I have a warrant for her arrest, a real puta that one is, she’s dangerous.”

It was nice to be welcomed back into her second home growing up, minus the fact she was a little jumpy anytime Yessi confronted her. I guess this is what PTSD felt like. Regardless of that horrible week, it seemed like two was just enough for childhood friends to make amends. Luckily for the two of them, it was right in time for the upcoming Halloween party. Kavi, whoever that was, decided to throw his own party seeing as homecoming ruined everything. This was perfect, probably her best chance to reach Diablo in private. He might have been the devil, but hell hath no fury as a woman scorned.

Channeling her best Holly Golighty, Ximena became the sparkling New York socialite looking for her Prince Charming. If anything the red lipstick was her calling card, commanding everyone’s attention, Diamonds were a girl's best friend; adorning herself with the finest jewels that rivaled Ms. Hepburn’s, and finally her signature long cigarette holder. Of course, the only thing toxic coming out of her mouth were her words.

Her hands shot up, but also her blood pressure from fear of being hit. Yessi’s laugh disarmed her fear as Ximena returned her playful act. “Oh officer, I think you got the wrong girl! Please don’t spank me! Wouldn’t you rather use those cuffs!” She said pouting her lips and opening her eyes. “She sounds dangerous! I haven’t seen her but I’ll be on the lookout. I’ll have donuts waiting when you do” she said with a wink.

The paddle was returned to her hip as was the wink Ximena threw her way, “You look goood Meme.” Yessi spoke sincerely, an approving nod followed before she turned to the mirror and dabbed a clear sparkly gloss on her lips. A controlled hand through her hair created tousled waves under the black leather hat,” We look hot, alright, if you’re ready to go we should head down, I’m sure Reli is pouting by now from having to wait around for us.”

“Aye gracias Bebe, pero mi trasero no es tan grande como el tuyo” Ximena said returning the compliment. Everything was set for her costume and the long night ahead of them, she simply grabbed her cute little bag which featured Audrey Hepburn’s on the front and followed Ye towards the stairs. “Oh you don’t have to tell me twice, those boys are going to be all over us,” she said, “he’s probably been ready for the last hour, vamonos querida”

The sound of laughter trailed down the stairs and effectively perked up the greater of the twins stationed at the third from the bottom step of the staircase,“Finally.” Was his grumble of relief as he finished his text to Julie and slid his phone in one of the zip up pockets of the diving suit he wore and cast his eyes at the pair.

To: Teacher of Bright Burning Torches
I look forward to seeing her Majesty at the ball. ;)

“Well you look fit for the corner Astraia, should Ximena and I pick you up after the party?” Aurelio teased standing up and smoothly spinning out of reach of his now glowering sister.

“You know you have a knack for ruining the good mood-” ”and you, a spectacular talent for ruining everything.””-You’re one to talk, at least my nipples aren’t showing, you slut. ”

“Better than having my entire ass out. Well, anyways, let’s go Ms. Hepburn, we have a whore to drop off.” Aurelio pressed looping his arm around Ximena’s shoulder and led her to the garage, an annoyed sister stomping along behind them.

Ximena couldn’t help but guffaw at the interaction between the two siblings. It was surely something she would have missed if it weren’t for the make up her and Yeye had. She missed this. Of course, they were both partially right, the two were dressed rather provocatively. A surprise to most since Ximena was dressed the most conservatively.

“Oh hush now Reli, you know how long us girls take,” she said, “There are too many jokes I can make about your costume Mr. Diver, but I’ll let the others have them. As far as your sister I guess she’s playing bad cop tonight.”

His arm felt powerful yet comfortable, the familiar feeling brought her back to the time she has spent venting to him. She would never be able to repay him for that day nor would she forget it. In any case, the trio was about to trick and treat some unscrupulous individuals.

Aurelio smirked as he got into the back of the all-black Model X, allowing Ximena her rightful place beside Astraia as she climbed behind the steering wheel.

“Alright, time to go fuck it up at the Salvador’s.”

_{Time //Friday 9:30 PM}

_{Location // Salvador Monster Mash}

🎃 🎃 🎃 🎃 🎃 🎃 🎃

The Tesla rolled to a steady stop outside of the already raging party and the opening of the doors released the billows of pungent smoke as the three of them stepped out into the street.

The smile was lazily playing on Astraia’s plump lips as she looped her arm through Ximena’s and Aurelio’s and approached the familiar house she’d been to more times than she probably should have. The three of them entered together and promptly split up, the sight of a pyramid of green Jell-O shots in the back of the room captured Yessi’s already inebriated attention, and better yet, her habit of poor decision making.

Aurelio, on the other hand, was already pushing his way through the crowded foyer searching for a certain redhead. When either luck or his eyes failed him, probably the latter influenced by the fog that had clouded the SUV that drove them here, he stopped searching among the crowd of bad dancers and let himself indulge in the fun.

A few songs passed when wandering brown eyes landed a particularly unhappy looking unfamiliar face. Well, mostly everyone was unfamiliar in their painted and masked face, nevertheless, his feet moved in her direction before he actually made up his mind.

The deep bass still vibrated through his body by the treble and lyrics of the song were softer at the perimeter of the room and he was thankful to not have to yell to get her attention.

“I didn’t realize Day of The Day came early this year.” he started in a light tone offering a friendly chuckle before motioning to the crowd, “So who drug you here, seems like this isn’t your scene. I’m Aurelio by the way.”

Like criminals in a heist, the three branched off into the night with their own special agendas. Whatever riches they would return with were for the morrow when the witches brew and tricks were all said and done. The decorations were cute, quite scary if she were a toddler, but alas it was better the high school alternative. While the three hoeskuteers were fashionably late it seemed as though even they were early to the party. There were a few familiar faces: Kavi the host, Carter, and Georgia but none of them on her list or well at least yet.

Instead, the Wicked Witch made her way to the alcohol leaving her gaze on the doorway ready to lure her prey into her web.

[eclecticwitch]

Theme for this post -

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_{Location: Kavi's Fucking House
Interactions: Briefly Kavi
Color: 98AC90}

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Confusion contorted his face as his phone buzzed, indicating a message. Guy pulled it out and opened it up to see it was from an unknown number. Kavi. How in the light of all that was holy Kavi had gotten his number the young man couldn't know. He read the message and then read it again, and then re-read it just to be sure it said what it really said and was meant to come to him. It seemed a number of people in their class had gotten the same message. Apparently, the almighty Kavi was inviting wee ickle Guy to his fucking party.

For a while he flipped and flopped back and forth, hemmed and hawed, attempting to decide whether or not he wanted to go. When a couple of friends, including Archer, had stated their intent on going he decided that he might as well. Live it up while he could, so to speak. It wasn't every day he was going to be invited to some rich kid's house for a party. Kavi would likely be too busy with all of his guests to really pick on him. Though, the guy had been uncharacteristically unantagonistic toward him for the last few days.

The day of the party arrived and the young Guy looked through old costumes that he owned, unable to afford anything new or grandiose. He considered a couple of classics - Link, Howl, a mime... Finally, he decided on something he considered to be a bit obscure and would hopefully leave him as more of a background piece. People not knowing what he was, therefore leaving him alone rather than insisting on pictures. He donned the guise of one Milo Thatch of the classic cartoon Atlantis.

He drove his beat up, rusted four-door sedan to the location and parked a little bit away in case he had to make a run for it. Kavi had obviously spent some time and money on his decorations. All Guy could think about looking at them was the amount of rent or groceries he could purchase using that same amount of cash. While amazing and grand to look at, ultimately a waste. But here he was, coming to enjoy the show so who was he to talk?

He approached the door, only to have some sort of electronic beasts come out roaring at him. He let out a small shriek and just about shit his britches. Stupid. Jerk. Guy rung the doorbell of doom before being allowed entrance to what had been guaranteed to be a wild time. He mostly saw people he hardly knew. He wandered around the edge of chaos until he came to a drink table. Not typically the type to get himself in trouble he figured a Jell-O shot couldn't hurt. Right?

---

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_{Location: Kavi's dank ass house
Interactions: Kavi Biefly
Color: E0633C}

---

Bea pulled out her flip phone and stared at the text she had received. Who the fuck was Kavi? She thought about it a long while until it dawned on her. Oh yeah. The guy who got his nose broke by that girl at homecoming and then went to jail. Cool. A party sounded killer. After her very confusing conversation with Jordan, she felt having some time to unwind and be a bit crazy would be nice. That boy made her head all stupid and she didn't really want to think about it too much. The young woman enlisted the help of her dads to create the perfect costume.

Blonde curly wig, form-fitting black, off the shoulders top, and heels that bumped her height up a couple of inches. They even did her make-up for her. While she wouldn't win any sort of look-a-like contest she certainly did Olivia Newton-John proud at her rendition of Sandy from Grease. The only thing that offset the look was her fanny pack, which was just classic Bea and could not be done without. She decided to take a taxi to the party, not wanting to drive as she intended to get herself good and shit faced.

The house looked like a B-Movie supply shop barfed all over it. She thought he should keep the decorations up, they were pretty stellar. She approached the door and the gargoyles did their function. Bea stared blankly at them for a moment before growling back. Nothing else happened. She jabbed at one with a finger and it became apparent that they were not hired goons in suits. Too bad, that would have been the icing on the cake. The doorbell sound was pretty neat and she thought, again, he should keep it year 'round.

The door opened, Kavi said some words that Bea couldn't remember and she mumbled something about 'Thanks for hosting, looks awesome, blah blah blah.' As was customary for going to a gathering she brought Kavi a gift as well. A rather large cactus that was about as tall as her forearm and as thick as a football player's thigh. Once the clunky gift was out of her hands, the young woman made a bee-line for the drink table. While there were not a lot of people here, there was still far too much noise and commotion for her liking. Time to dull things. She grabbed a red solo cup and filled it with far more Jack than Coke, but she savored the flavor of it as she watched out for anyone she might know here. She popped out the back way so that she could enjoy a cigarette. It was quieter here, not enough people yet for any shenanigans or a comradery of smokers. She dug one out from her fannypack as she sat on the edge of a deck chair. Drink in one hand, cigarette in the other. It was all that was needed to complete the look of 'Bad Sandy.'

[NeoAJ]

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She was nervous.

It wasn't an emotion befitting her costume but she couldn't help it. The long walk from her now parked Audi A8 wasn't helping matters either. It gave her way too much time to think. The two bottles of red wine, the finest Ramiro had to offer, were starting to weigh heavy in her hands.

Shawna wasn't even sure she was supposed to bring booze. When Kavi Salvador came up to Kellie, Sunshine and her at the lunch table that day earlier this week, it was shock enough as it was. Kavi never seemed to be aware of Shawna in the first place. Maybe it was Kellie who was able to lure him over. Either way, he came bearing invites to a Halloween party at his expansive family home on Saturday. It was rare for Shawna to get an invite to any of these shindigs, at least in the pre-tattoo era of her life. Now, she had no idea what kind of reputation she was going to be expected to maintain, but showing up with unexpected booze was a better plan than showing up with no booze when expected to BYOB.

The same kind of thought process went into her costume for the evening, which was also starting to weigh on her arms a little bit. It took some putting together, especially considering how little Shawna had in terms of dressing up as something other than a student. She hadn't celebrated Halloween in a few years, and there was little chance she was going to go raiding her mom's closet for anything, or see if Lia had any hand-me-down options still kicking around.

She went to a costume shop in Palm Beach and had a look. She wanted something that would help her stand out. Make sure that the next time there was a party to be had, she would get a direct invite rather than just happen to be at a table. Something...risque. The shimmering bangles and crown caught her eye, and looked to be exotic enough that it would guarantee attention. After all, Cleopatra was known for grabbing glimpses with a fraction of her beauty. So what the heck, right?

Of course Kellie Anne approved of the costume. They were hanging out a lot lately. With the tension from the library chat defused, the two girls let things just kinda happen. Kellie would often come over to Shawna's since no one was there, and they would alternate between watching movies, or running along the beach, or just talking about junk. It was a lovely change of pace from the usual loneliness. A couple times, it led to the sort of activities Cleopatra would scoff at, but for Shawna were brand new experiences. Nothing too serious, clothes had yet to come off like they did in the pair's first day together. But still, there was passion and exploration there. It was exciting, and Shawna wanted more. Hence the risque costume.

However, it was clear that party decorum did not necessitate arriving on time. At least from the looks of things at the party. As she opened the door, Shawna thought she was going to chastized for being late, but there appeared to be just a small crowd to start at the Salvador place. She recognized Kavi, who offered a brief greeting and an assurance she didn't need to bring the wine as she entered, as well as ...CJ. Shit. I haven't talked to him since the day I met Kellie. This is gonna be a bit awkward then... Carter appeared to be busy with someone else, so that suited Shawna just fine for now.

She adjusted the wig of straight black hair on her head and continued to move around the area, towards where Kavi had indicated the vast selection of alcohol was. Well then... guess I can just leave these here. She quickly eschewed the Ocala vintage wines she had brought and mixed herself a whiskey and coke that leaned more to the Irish side than the other. The music continued to blare, but aside from CJ, it was clear there was no one she had tangible relations with. So Shawna turned to her phone, where there were contact with people with whom she did have such connections.

While waiting for a response, Cleopatra picked up her milk and honey and took a long sip. She hoped they were arriving soon. There was no telling what could happen to a defenseless queen in a place like this.

[AlteredTundra]

Halloween was never Sonny’s favorite holiday. To him, it wasn’t even a holiday. There wasn’t a big deal about it in the press aside from the warning he saw about crazy teens in masks causing trouble in the suburbs of Palm Beach and Miami, but there was never any celebration to be had. The only thing about Halloween that was noteworthy was the excuse for the women aged from high school ages to mid-20s to dress as slutty as they wanted, though obviously the latter would have a bit more leeway on account of the legality of it all. But the fact remained that Sonny wasn’t exactly hyped for it.

So, imagine his absolute displeasure when he was approached by Kavi about a Halloween party being held at his parents’ house on Saturday. It wasn’t as though Sonny was entirely disappointed by the news. Parties were fun but the fact that he had to put the extra effort into a costume wasn’t the high point of his week. Still, Sonny wasn’t not going to get a costume, but if he was going to do the whole costume thing, everyone should expect the resident class clown (or so he thought he was) to one up just about everyone else. There was no way in hell Sonny Drake was going to skimp out on anything. He was going to make it a memorable costume, one that he and everyone else will be talking about.

When the week proceeded as planned and every day seemed to blend into each other, Sonny had been slow at work for his costume. See he knew to stand out, he would need some help. And for the idea he had, he wasn’t going to need just anybody’s help. Oh no, Sonny needed to bust out the big guns, so he phoned someone who knew exactly what he needed to dress to impress.

And as his bedroom door would open, when he turned around, Sonny sighed out, though he turned a neutral expression into a slight grin. “Took you long enough. You do realize I have to get everything ready in less than five hours, right?”

As the door closed, a smug Drea walked past Sonny as she set the makeup kit in her hand on his desk. “Yes hello Andrea. How nice to see you,” she said, feigning a Sonny voice. “Oh, I’m good. How about you? Yeah good too.” She spoke, talking for her ungrateful brother as well as for herself.

Sonny rolled his eyes. “If I wanted to be mocked by my older sister, I would have just shared one of my best memes.” He approached his desk, giving Drea a reluctant hug. She, however, had other ideas and forced him to give her a proper hug (much to his disappointment). “Jesus, okay let me go, you wild animal!”

She giggled her way through a smile as she gestured her brother to sit down in the chair. As he did (and begrudgingly at that), she opened up her makeup kit, a mirror showing the often unflattering mug of SOnny’s. She made sure to get out everything she needed: concealer, mascara, and other general beauty items to help transform his face into something resembling anything decent.

“Are you sure about this?” She asked before she started to apply the makeup.

“I wouldn’t have called you if I wasn’t. I need to make an impression,” he said with the straightest face he could.

Drea sighed, rolling her eyes. “YOu know, when you called me and said you wanted to go as me for Halloween, I thought it was a joke but hearing just how much you thought about it, I knew this was the only chance I was going to get to turn you into a girl.” A sinister laugh soon followed as she prepared his cheeks with a slight application of skin-colored blush.

“You motivations impress me. Such a mature 19-year-old you are, Andrea.”

“Bet your ass I am!” Drea proudly exclaimed, “now turn your head to the right so I can apply your blush, Miss Drake,” she giggled as Sonny did just as she requested.

And as the hours would go by and as Sonny would soon see himself be transformed into someone he barely recognized, he became lost in the handiwork his sister alone was responsible for. Whether she was proud that she accomplished such a feat of being able to make Sonny Drake, a boy who was often made fun of for his rat face by his enemies/people who hated his guts, was not someone who was as close to being a girl as one could without actually going the whole nine yards.

To his own surprise, Sonny was smiling and turned back to Drea with the same smile. “Well done, Drea. You actually did something right for once!” The genuine appreciation in his voice was shocking even for him.

As he leaned closer into the mirror, getting a better look of himself, Drea sat down on his bed. He could see her amused grin as he further examined just how pretty he was.

“Careful now. You don’t want to fall in love with this version of yourself,” she warned, waving her finger as she taunted him, her laugh soon following.

Sonny turned around, just glaring at his still-smiling sister. Only for a moment did it linger, but soon it left as she too would get up. “C’mon, Ms. Drake,” she teased, “let’s find you a cute outfit to wear!”

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Sonny--Sonia--Drake pulled up to Kavi’s house. He half-expected some sort of display of horror cheer, but to his surprise, there was actually a fair amount of detail thrown into the presentation. It was almost as though Kavi took it seriously. Either that or he wanted to just impress people. Must be why they were friends because both went all out for the party. While Kavi made sure to put all of his energy into the outward and possible inward presentation, Sonia was ready to shock and awe everyone for how much work he put into his own Halloween presentation.

Finally, as he decided he was ready to showcase all the hard work his sister went into making sure he was as pretty as she could make him, strutting in heels, Sonny stepped down from his truck, put the alarm on, and knocked on the door three times.

“Welcome to the--” Kavi’s voice fell flat as his half-opened mouth froze upon seeing Sonny. “--You’re kidding me…”

Purposely, Sonny pushed up his bra, further selling the mirage of his getup. “Are you going to invite me in, big boy?” Sonny asked Kavi, upping his voice a few octaves as though he was trying his best to emulate Drea’s voice.

Kavi, who was doing everything he could to not burst into laughter, stepped to the side. “Ladies first,” he said, gesturing Sonia inside.

As Sonny would past his old friend, he punched Kavi hard in the chest, knocking the host of the party back a few paces.

Sonny just made his way in, taking in the atmosphere. He adjusts his wig, pushed up his bra, and strutted as only Sonia Drake could.

“Time to shake my thang!”